Assemblyman Brian Maienschein’s surprise announcement that he left the Republican Party for the Democratic Party invites some cynicism after he barely bested political neophyte Sunday Gover to win re-election in November to his 77th district seat representing north San Diego and communities like Poway, Rancho Santa Fe and Fairbanks Ranch. In his statement on his decision, he didn’t just describe himself as a moderate who felt out of place in President Donald Trump’s GOP, he also said he’d “changed” and now had liberal views on abortion, unions, health care, immigration and gun control.

But whether or not one views Maienschein’s decision as pure expedience, it is one more sign of the GOP’s deep and growing weakness in California. While some Republicans grasp that the party must evolve — including San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and outgoing state party Chairman Jim Brulte — many remain in denial, including several local officials. They think that anti-immigration and anti-tax views remain the GOP’s path to power. That the state Assembly now has 61 Democrats and 19 Republicans and California’s House delegation now has 46 Democrats and seven Republicans shows how huge of a hole the GOP has dug for itself.

The Golden State badlyneeds two healthy parties. The state’s dominant Democrats haven’t done nearly enough to improve schools, add housing or address pension underfunding. But they keep winning because their values are in sync with most voters. Republicans will languish until they acknowledge this fact — and change accordingly.